A Glimmer of Hope
I saw a glimmer of hope!
Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.
Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.
"Ugh...!? Haa..."
My eyes fluttered open to the shrill blare of the alarm clock.
I dragged myself up from the bed with great effort.
Naturally, I was at the Tistina family villa—specifically, in Lilit's estate, and even more specifically, in her bedroom.
As expected, when I looked down, my lovely girlfriend, Lilit Tistina, was lying right beside me.
Her eyes were closed as she slept soundly, her fair skin glowing with a soft, radiant luster.
Unlike her, who looked completely refreshed, I felt like a train wreck. I had slept, sure, but every muscle in my body ached and felt strangely stiff.
The reason, of course, was the long, grueling night we had shared.
Part of it was because Seraphina had spent the last few days squeezing every last drop out of me... but my girlfriend, Lilit, was no slouch in that department either.
The moment we stepped into the bedroom last night with our exhausted bodies, Lilit had pounced on me, locking her lips with mine in a deep, passionate kiss.
Even as she tangled her tongue with mine as if every second counted, her hands were busy, frantically stripping the clothes off both of us.
Before we could even make it onto the bed, we were already half-naked.
"Haa... Hurry... Hurry... ♥"
Whispering those words, her hand slipped roughly inside my underwear.
She caressed and teased the tip of my shaft, while using her other hand to pull mine down, guiding my fingers to stroke her tight, soaking wet crevice.
As we fondled each other's sensitive spots, our bodies quickly flared with heat.
Unable to hold back any longer, Lilit buried her face between my thighs and began to suck greedily.
She seemed entirely consumed by lust, not caring at all how she looked as she swirled her tongue around, busy devouring my member.
Watching the prestigious Lady of the Tistina Ducal House suck me so hard that her cheeks hollowed out filled me with an overwhelming sense of depravity.
Once my shaft grew rock-hard and slick with her saliva, she pulled away, straddled me, and guided my erection deep inside her.
Shuddering from the intense pleasure of our hot, swollen flesh grinding together, she wrapped her legs tightly around my waist.
I supported her waist and hips with both hands, thrusting up into her.
It was a position that required a lot of stamina, but since physical endurance was my strong suit, I had no trouble thrusting continuously until she reached her climax.
I came once, but Lilit was far from satisfied. She dragged me onto the bed, sat on top of my erection, and began to ride me.
With our faces close, we locked lips and whispered endless declarations of love to each other as she moved her hips.
She squirted like a fountain, spraying her juices across my abs and chest as she climaxed, and I filled her to the brim with my thick, white release.
...Well, everything after that went exactly as you'd expect.
Before I could even recover the energy Seraphina had drained from me, my girlfriend Lilit had sucked dry what little stamina I had left.
Fortunately, if there was one thing I was confident in, it was my physical endurance. I managed to stay conscious until the very end, absorbing all of her intense affection.
But it seemed I had taken out a loan on my future stamina, because the muscle aches and fatigue were hitting me all at once now.
"Man... My body doesn't get a single day of rest lately..."
Come to think of it, we had barely been dating for about ten days, yet her expressions of affection were growing bolder by the day.
It wasn't really my place to talk, considering our relationship had started with a one-night stand, but Lilit and I were moving at a breakneck pace for a couple.
Maybe it was because we had already been close friends for a long time, so we were already comfortable with each other.
Looking back, she had actually dropped quite a few hints and made subtle moves on me in the past.
Is this how it always goes when long-time friends start dating?
I tried digging up memories of my past life for comparison, but my mental database was completely empty—not just in the 'girlfriend' category, but even in the 'just friends' category. I couldn't draw any conclusions.
Well, of course. I had grown up in an orphanage, never even went to school, and spent my adult years drifting from one construction site to another.
The only stories I had ever overheard were the grumblings of middle-aged construction workers, which were light-years away from anything resembling youth.
...I ended up digging up painful memories for nothing.
Anyway, although the alarm had woken me up, it was still incredibly early.
Since this was Lilit's bedroom, the alarm must be hers... but why did she set it to go off at the crack of dawn?
Was today some special occasion?
As I wondered, the calendar hanging on the far wall caught my eye.
Today's date was circled in red, with a small note written next to it.
Ah... Right.
It finally clicked. Today was the first day of the new academy semester.
I had been so distracted by dating Lilit and... everything that happened with Seraphina that it had completely slipped my mind.
I see... Come to think of it, this would be my final year at the academy.
It was the first time I was experiencing youth in this second life of mine, yet it felt like it had flown by in the blink of an eye.
Was it because I had already spent the first three years here before regaining my memories?
Well, whether it was the Rofel before regaining his memories or the Rofel after, they were both me, so it didn't really matter.
Still, I couldn't deny a lingering sense of regret.
But what could I do? I just had to make sure I made the most of this final year and finished my academy life on a high note.
But wait... did I really have the luxury to be this relaxed right now?
Lilit Tistina and I had become a couple not through normal means, but because of a one-night mistake.
Things were fine for now, but if the elders of the Tistina family ever found out, it would be an absolute disaster.
And Seraphina Serion, another friend who had witnessed the relationship between Lilit and me, had suddenly snapped and forced herself on me.
She had coerced me into an unfair deal, forcing me to keep giving her my body and betraying my girlfriend, Lilit...
To make matters worse, she had locked a strange collar around my neck, preventing me from telling anyone about this.
...Suddenly, the future felt incredibly bleak.
Even if I could sort out my relationship with Lilit step by step, there was absolutely no answer for my situation with Seraphina.
Trying to overpower her was out of the question, and the magic tool around my neck prevented me from asking for help.
Well... I wasn't entirely sure if it was a magic tool, but since it didn't seem to restrict me physically, I could only assume it was a magic tool or something similar.
Seriously, if only this magic tool wasn't here...
Sigh... If I had known this would happen, I would have taken a class on magic tools at the academy...
It was notorious for being incredibly dry and boring, so very few people took it, and I had never even bothered to sign up.
The only students who took it were either desperate for credits or geniuses capable of memorizing all those complex theories.
In fact, only one of my friends had ever taken that class.
Isabella Kshatri, the daughter of the Magic Tower Master and one of the main heroines of this game world.
It was just like her to take every single magic-related class... Wait.
Hold on. Isabella Kshatri. Yes! I have Isabella!
She was an absolute genius in this field, capable of mastering the contents of any magic lecture within a single month!
Right now, I didn't even know the type or grade of the magic tool I was wearing, but if I met Isabella, who was practically an expert, things might change.
No matter how powerful Seraphina of the Serion family was, if I could get this magic tool off and ask my other friends for help, I might find a way out!
Recalling the letter she sent me recently, she probably hadn't arrived at the academy yet.
But once the semester started and the academy resumed its normal operations, meeting her again wouldn't be too difficult.
If I could get her help to analyze this magic tool, I might be able to come up with a plan to escape Seraphina's clutches.
Ah... Thinking about it that way, it felt like a lifeline had descended from the pitch-black sky...!
"Hmm..."
Filled with endlessly dark and complex magic circles, this place was the library of the Magic Tower—the very heart of magical research.
True to its name and location, it was a repository overflowing with countless fragments of ancient knowledge.
In the dead of night, reading a book by the light of a flame floating in midair, sat a young woman with crimson hair and red eyes: Isabella Kshatri, the daughter of the Magic Tower Master.
Her eyes narrowed as she scanned the pages, searching for something specific amidst the towering stacks of books.
A moment later, the lights in the dark library flickered on, and a man draped in a deep robe stepped inside.
His identity was none other than the current Magic Tower Master, Shangri Kshatri.
"What are you doing at this hour?"
At his question, Isabella replied bluntly.
"I was merely reading."
"You seem to have made quite a mess for someone 'merely reading.'"
"That is none of your concern."
"...Hmph. Make sure you clean up after yourself."
The robed man looked displeased, but he didn't press further and quietly left the library.
"Damn it... Miserable old fossil..."
Isabella spat a quiet curse at the man's retreating back.
She slammed the book shut and clutched her head with a heavy sigh.
"Did I make a mistake...? I returned even at the cost of having to look at that wretched face again, yet I have gained absolutely nothing..."
"Had I known it would be like this, I would have spent this time with him instead...!"
The image of a man floated to the forefront of her mind.
A man with messy black hair, dark eyes, and a sturdy, ruggedly handsome build.
The person she cherished and valued above all else: Rofel Teufel.
She could have spent the break with him, but in the end, she had chosen a different path.
She had returned to the Magic Tower to dig up information for their future.
But having achieved absolutely nothing, she couldn't help but sigh.
"Phew... But I must not lose heart. After all... I will be reunited with him very soon!"
"And besides... Fufu... I even received a reply like this from him, so I have absolutely nothing to worry about!"
She pulled a letter from her breast pocket.
It was Rofel's reply, filled with positive sentiments toward the letter she had sent him. She had kept it close to her body ever since she received it.
Grinning from ear to ear, she unfolded the letter once more, a warm smile spreading across her face as she read the words she had already memorized.